12 Celebrities Who Should Be Craft-Beer Boosters

The easy answer is no—after all, one of the things that’s great about the craft-beer movement in America is how organic its early growth has been, driven primarily by the passion of brewers and fans rather than marketing gimmicks or flash-in-the-pan trends. But anyone who is committed to craft beer’s continued rise knows that it needs to keep chipping away at the status quo and gaining more fans. And in America, there’s no better way to make people change their minds than by enlisting the help of celebrities.

Let’s be clear: We’re not talking about boldface schilling—a Dogfish Head television ad featuring Kate Upton swigging Festina Pêche in a bikini might just be the end of craft brewing as we know it. And we’re certainly not talking about celebs making beer (*cough* Adrian Grenier *cough*)—we’ve already seen how wrong that can go in the wine and spirits industries.

Rather, we just want to see our favorite breweries get some more mainstream love from famous folks who drink beer, and who shouldn’t be afraid to say it loud and proud.

With that, here are 12 celebrities that we know—or have good reason to believe—are craft-beer fans. They wield a lot of influence, and we can only hope they use it to spread the gospel of hops and malts.

Does craft beer need celebrities?
The easy answer is no—after all, one of the things that's great about the craft-beer movement in America is how organic its early growth has been, driven primarily by the passion of brewers and fans rather than marketing gimmicks or flash-in-the-pan trends. But anyone who is committed to craft beer's continued rise knows that it needs to keep chipping away at the status quo and gaining more fans. And in America, there's no better way to make people change their minds than by enlisting the help of celebrities.
Let's be clear: We're not talking about boldface schilling—a Dogfish Head television ad featuring Kate Upton swigging Festina Pêche in a bikini might just be the end of craft brewing as we know it. And we're certainly not talking about celebs making beer (*cough* Adrian Grenier *cough*)—we've already seen how wrong that can go in the wine and spirits industries.
Rather, we just want to see our favorite breweries get some more mainstream love from famous folks who drink beer, and who shouldn't be afraid to say it loud and proud.
With that, here are 12 celebrities that we know—or have good reason to believe—are craft-beer fans. They wield a lot of influence, and we can only hope they use it to spread the gospel of hops and malts.Written by Chris Schonberger (@cschonberger)

Alexa Chung

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted drinking a pint from London's Camden Town BreweryHow she could help the cause: As a bonafide "it" girl on both sides of the Atlantic, Chung is no stranger to setting off trends. If she could get the fashion set sipping Sixpoint and Kernel instead of flavored vodka, it would be a huge coup.

Rachael Ray

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: She declared "I love Rogue!" after guest Fred Armisen gave her a bottle of the brewery's Voodoo Donut Maple Bacon Ale on air.
How she could help the cause: Ray has an incredibly powerful platform with her multipronged media empire. Have no doubt about it: She could convert housewives from Pinot Grigio drinkers to saison aficionados with the snap of her fingers.

Barack Obama

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: POTUS has supported the White House kitchen staff in making beers such as the White House Honey Ale during his tenure
How he could help the cause: Giving the nod to homebrewing from the highest office in the land is already a huge move. But in his second term, he can really get down to business. We'll forgive him for choosing a Bud Light during Beergate in 2009 if he invites Garrett Oliver (Brooklyn Brewery) and Sam Calagione (Dogfish Head) to the White House to do a beer-pairing dinner.

Charlize Theron

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted carrying cases of Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA into a friend's house for a Super Bowl party
How she could help the cause: This is America. People do what Hollywood stars do. If Charlize knocks back IPAs instead of watered-down lagers, others will follow suit.

Nate Fillion

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted drinking a Drake's IPA with a twisty straw on his 40th birthday
How he could help the cause: We can tackle proper glassware—and getting rid of the straw—later. For now, having the star of ABC's Castles drink more craft brews in public would be a step in the right direction.

Kat Dennings

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted on Instagram drinking a Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale straight out of the bottle
How she could help the cause: The star of 2 Broke Girlslistens to Slayer, reads comics, and is generally awesome. She is a great role model for women who don't buy into the celebutante nonsense, and her choice of beverage only confirms that. Keep drinking good beer, Kat!

Dan Akroyd

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted drinking a Schlafly Pale Ale
How he could help the cause: He may be selling vodka out of crystal heads at the moment, but we don't need him making any beer—just drink more of the good stuff out in public, please.

Claudia Schiffer

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: Spotted drinking German beer at an Oktoberfest party
How she could help the cause: Supermodels and beer-drinking don't usually go together in mainstream media, but it's awesome to see Schiffer repping her German roots. If the traditional German breweries want to regain their footing in the world beer market, they need to holler at Claudia, stat. She's the ticket.

The cast of How I Met Your Mother

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: There's a running joke about punny craft-beer names in the sitcom—whenever Lily (Alyson Hannigan) or Marshall (Jason Segel) go somewhere, they bring back a local microbrew (like Fort Lager Dale or Puget Stout) as a gift.
How they could help the cause: Craft beer may be the butt of a joke, but at least it's acknowledged. It's cool that the characters don't just drink crappy beer, and it would be great if they repped the same predilections off-screen as well.

Dan Patrick

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: The former SportsCenter anchor is involved in a craft beer shop called Growler Station in NYC, where he makes picks for the draft lineup.
How he could help the cause: If anyone is primed to be converted from swill to quality brews, it's sports lovers. Patrick''s got their ears on NBC Sports and beyond, so we hope he keeps spreading the word.

Aisha Tyler

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: She and her husband, Jeff Tietjens, are avid homebrewers.
How she could help the cause: Two things there aren't enough of in brewing: women and people of color. The TV star (Ghost Whispherer,Archer) can fly the flag for both, and the fact that she not only loves good beer but also makes her own is a awesome.

George Wendt

Evidence of craft-beer drinking: In 2009, the former Cheers star put out a book called Drinking with George: A Barstool Professional's Guide to Beer.How he could help the cause: The characters on Cheers may not have been too adventurous in their beer-drinking, but Wendt seeks out great domestic and Belgian brews all over the place now. He might have some success converting the older generation of drinkers who grew up watching him on the tube.

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